I don't think it has been released yet, but I have my order in for it already!

Tom

Anyone who is interested in the Space Shuttle program should get a copy of Dennis Jenkins new book called "Space Shuttle-The First 100 Missions".

Everything you wanted to know (or review) about the shuttle is there. It has many pictures including a section of color photos.

All 100 mission patches are shown in color as well as the patches of missions that were scheduled to fly in 1986 after Challenger.

Well worth the $35.

music_space

To accompany the last flights of the Shuttle, I'm reading again Shuttle-related books, including Dennis Jenkins' "Space Shuttle - The History of Developing the National Space Transportatation System - The Beginning through STS-75".

Remarkably self-published in 1996 as a quality glazed-paper, hard-cover book (I got it at the Skunkworks boutique in 1999 for 40$), the genesis of the STS is very well covered, with comprehensive reviews of all early vehicular concepts technologically important for the STS: lifting body programs, thermal protection test programs, partially- and totally-recoverable concepts, etc.

Jenkins is obviously engineering-inclined. Do we know more about him?

Excellent book!

GoesTo11

Thought I'd re-visit this topic. Does anyone know if a final revision of Jenkins' (in my opinion definitive) shuttle book is still on track, who the publisher/distributor might be, or when we might see it?

X-Plane Fan

Jenkins shuttle history is still on track. It is expected to be a 3 volume set which should be available not long after the last orbiter is delivered to its museum. He wants to include the delivery of each, just to make the books complete.

GoesTo11

Well, that's rather mixed news. I'm excited that the final edition is still in the works (as a 3-volume set, no less!), but I'm a bit ambivalent about Dennis' plans to publish after the museum delivery of the last orbiter.

At the least, this means we may not see it for years yet. I don't want to lurch off-topic, so I'll just say that I simply don't have much faith that all this (museum construction, delivery and display) is going to come off smoothly or expeditiously. While Dennis' desire to "close the circle" is admirable, I hope he's not too wedded to the idea.

kyra

Perhaps he set the timing to write and thoroughly proof check the two new volumes of material. This work has earned the descriptor of "definitive". The only shortfall ever mentioned was that the mission by mission descriptions were not developed as much as they could have been (and of course more color mission pics!).

herranzc

It might be a good idea for the publishers to issue the three volumes as a series as the content is delivered by Jenkins, and so the third one could wait to include everything that is happening at the end of the program (not just the museum part, but also the dismantling of launch pads and other ground infrastructure, for example). It would make a great companion series to the no less expected three part series 'The Apollo Program: 3000 Days to the Moon' by David Baker.

sev8n

quote:Originally posted by X-Plane Fan:Jenkins shuttle history is still on track.

Any updates on a publication date?

GoesTo11

Seconded. Would really like to know where Dennis is at with this.

cspg

quote:Originally posted by GoesTo11:Seconded. Would really like to know where Dennis is at with this.

All you needed was to ask!

From Dennis Jenkins (3/4/2013):

I am busily working on the new book, but it is taking longer than expected primarily because I am constantly finding more things I want to cover, and real-life keeps getting in the way (read, making a living). I am still hoping to have it available sometime this year (probably later rather than sooner), but I am more concerned with getting it correct than meeting any particular schedule. Current planning shows a three-volume boxed set totaling about 1,500 pages, so it will not be cheap. But hopefully it will be interesting to everybody...

sev8n

As many of you probably know, there have been three publications of this book, the first covering through flight 50, the second through flight 75, and the third through flight 100.

What many may not know is that Mr Jenkins wrote an earlier edition covering through flight 25 (51-L). It was published by Aerofax as Datagraph 5 - Rockwell International Space Shuttle. ISBN is 0-942548-15-9, 72 pages in length.

nasamad

If you can find it, its worth getting the publication above. A very nice little addition to my collection when I got it.

sev8n

wishful bump...

sev8n

quote:Originally posted by GoesTo11:Seconded. Would really like to know where Dennis is at with this.

quote:Originally posted by cspg: All you needed was to ask!

It's been a year since the last update, is there anything new to report? Really looking forward to this book/set.

cspg

Email sent to Dennis Jenkins. Will keep you posted.

cspg

I got a reply from Dennis Jenkins.

His day job is keeping him too busy. He's making progress with four chapters left to do but as he wrote "...although that is slightly overstating the case since then I have to read them, smooth them, etc. And then lay them out and make them into a book. I keep kidding myself that I am going to be done writing by June, but it is already March..."